Boats, the latest form of transportation for us

Today was beautiful, as we were promised. We headed straight to the Fish market and green market, only to discover them closed. Maurizo said every day except Wednesday. Tom questioned this as we were on our way (because today is Sunday), but Maurizo said…. Well apparently Maurizo thought we should KNOW that they wouldn’t be open on a Sunday!




We wandered through the Sunday market, which was kind of an Italian swap meet of sorts. Found a few goodies and then wandered several of the sestieres (neighborhoods) taking pictures.



We took a Tragetto ride. It is a gondola taxi that ferries mostly locals (and in the know tourists) across the canals. There are 7 or 8 locations around Venice, and it’s a great way to ride a Gondola on the cheap. A 45 minute gondola ride is 100 euro now ($150.00) and the 5 minute Tragetto ride is 50 euro cent (75 cents). Bargain.



I have had numerous opportunities to use my Italian, and my German on this trip. Riding the Tragetto was one of the times. There was an older gentleman waiting to ride. I asked if he spoke English (In Italian) and he said “no, but you are speaking to me in Italian, so you need to continue speaking to me in Italian.” I asked him how much the Tragetto cost, and he told me, and then said “ You want to ride the gondola.” He then told me where the other Tragetto points were, and then complained about the high cost of a Gondola ride. Phew. That conversation really exercised my skills! I was really proud of myself though. I definitely need to learn more though (lots, and lots more!)



All during our trip I have encountered people that didn’t speak English but spoke Italian or German. It’s pretty handy to be able to communicate on some level. It also helps that I decided this trip that I needed to use what I know and not be afraid. I have worried in the past that people would laugh at my attempts to speak to them. Why? I wouldn’t laugh at someone trying to speak English. I guess my accent must be OK too, because when I have asked for directions, etc. people just start rattling things off to me, sure that I must be able to understand it all. (I sure do love that Italian tend to talk with their hands! The sign language really helps!)





After our morning wander, we bought tickets for the vaporetto. These are the big boats that move people around in Venice. The tickets are RIDICULOUSLY priced. We bought the best bargain, 18 euro ($27.00) for a 24 hour pass. We planned everything carefully to make the most use of the pass.



First we rode to Burano, a cute and very colorful island, known for it’s lacemaking. The photo opportunities were amazing. We enjoyed our daily Gelato there. Tiramisu, coconut, and chocolate. Yum.



From Burano went to Murano, which is famous for it’s glass making. We sat in a café and drank water (with gas! Mykael, that’s for you…inside joke!) and cappucino. There are a number of public sculptures on display around the island. They are all made of glass. Very interesting and beautiful.



A funny thing happened in Murano….

Tom had this holiday fantasy that he was going to find Cigar bars all over Europe, where he could sit and enjoy a cigar while he chatted with European cigar smokers. No such luck. He has had to search out his Cubans at tobacco shops and has had no luck finding someone to smoke with. While in Murano he saw a man smoking a cigar and told me “since you speak Italian, you should ask him where he buys his cigars”. Nope. I am not gonna have anything to do with the gross smoking of cigars. He didn’t want to ask himself, so we walked on. Apparently long enough for Tom to regret the missed opportunity. Suddenly there was another man smoking a cigar. Not wanting to let another opportunity pass (and knowing I wasn’t going to help) he approached the man and asked him if he spoke English. The man said no. Tom sign languaged his way through asking the guy where he buys his cigars. Now, either the guy understood what he was asking, or thought Tom was begging for a cigar. Either way, he reached in to his bag, pulled out a cigar, showed Tom how he was supposed to wet the end (with his own cigar), and lit it up for Tom! Funny! The entire exchange took about a minute. Just as the guy was lighting it for Tom, his wife walked up. He said something to her, and she looked at Tom with kind of an astonished look on her face. Then she looked at me, and I just shrugged. This is what led us to believe that the guy thought Tom was asking him FOR a cigar, rather than ABOUT the cigar. He did show Tom the package though, so now he knows what to look for. I would love to hear that guys version of what happened! Wonder what he’s telling his friends!!! And yes, of course I have pictures!



After Murano we rode down the grand canal, which was a real disappointment. We wanted to take photos, and the light was just beautiful. However, every tourist in Venice was on our boat, and we were packed in like sardines. No room to move let alone get a good position for a photo. We plan to get up early tomorrow to beat the crowds. Tourists, go home!